Danica Patrick pretty much held her own, running 17th, in Friday's two-hour Nationwide Series practice session at treacherous ol' Darlington (S.C.) Raceway. But the track seriously cuffed her around when she got in her Sprint Cup car for that two-hour practice session.
Patrick, in the No. 10 Chevrolet for Tommy Baldwin/Stewart Hass Racing, was dead-last in the Cup session, more than 9 miles per hour slower than Kevin Harvick. She was among six drivers--a mixture of veterans and newcomers--who spun or slapped the wall for a “Darlington Stripe” that's been part of the 1.366-mile, egg-shaped track since 1950. Despite her poor performance so far, she has an owner-points provisional that ensures she'll make the 43-car field. This weekend marks the second of her 12 Cup races that will prepare her for next year's full 36-race grind.
Harvick, in a Chevy for Richard Childress Racing, led the session at 177.090 mph. Greg Biffle, in a Roush Fenway Ford, was second-fastest at 176.290 mph. Kurt Busch (175.993 mph) in a Chevy for Phoenix Racing, Carl Edwards (175.760 mph) in a Ford for Roush Fenway and Tony Stewart (175.647 mph) in a Chevy for Stewart-Haas Racing rounded out the top-10.
The rest of the top-10: Martin Truex in a Toyota at 175.403 mph and Jimmie Johnson in Chevys at identical 175.353 mph laps, Joey Logano in a Toyota at 175.322 mph and AJ Allmendinger in a Dodge at 175.141 mph. Patrick, Johnson, Stephen Leicht, David Gilliland and Martin Truex Jr. hit the wall, and Aric Almirola avoided any contact when he spun early in the session.
Patrick's best lap was 167.997 mph, a time of 29.272 seconds. That's 9.093 mph and 1.503 seconds per-lap slower than Harvick's best circuit. The only other driver not in the 170 mph range was Mike Skinner, whose best lap was 169.438 mph, a time of 29.023 seconds.
Cup teams have another practice session at 2:15 p.m, then qualify at 5:10 p.m. Their 367-lap, 500-mile race is Saturday at 7:15 p.m.
Patrick, in the No. 10 Chevrolet for Tommy Baldwin/Stewart Hass Racing, was dead-last in the Cup session, more than 9 miles per hour slower than Kevin Harvick. She was among six drivers--a mixture of veterans and newcomers--who spun or slapped the wall for a “Darlington Stripe” that's been part of the 1.366-mile, egg-shaped track since 1950. Despite her poor performance so far, she has an owner-points provisional that ensures she'll make the 43-car field. This weekend marks the second of her 12 Cup races that will prepare her for next year's full 36-race grind.
Harvick, in a Chevy for Richard Childress Racing, led the session at 177.090 mph. Greg Biffle, in a Roush Fenway Ford, was second-fastest at 176.290 mph. Kurt Busch (175.993 mph) in a Chevy for Phoenix Racing, Carl Edwards (175.760 mph) in a Ford for Roush Fenway and Tony Stewart (175.647 mph) in a Chevy for Stewart-Haas Racing rounded out the top-10.
The rest of the top-10: Martin Truex in a Toyota at 175.403 mph and Jimmie Johnson in Chevys at identical 175.353 mph laps, Joey Logano in a Toyota at 175.322 mph and AJ Allmendinger in a Dodge at 175.141 mph. Patrick, Johnson, Stephen Leicht, David Gilliland and Martin Truex Jr. hit the wall, and Aric Almirola avoided any contact when he spun early in the session.
Patrick's best lap was 167.997 mph, a time of 29.272 seconds. That's 9.093 mph and 1.503 seconds per-lap slower than Harvick's best circuit. The only other driver not in the 170 mph range was Mike Skinner, whose best lap was 169.438 mph, a time of 29.023 seconds.
Cup teams have another practice session at 2:15 p.m, then qualify at 5:10 p.m. Their 367-lap, 500-mile race is Saturday at 7:15 p.m.
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